8:20
PMCongratulations to all
our students who successfully their negotiated the treacherous waters of
Theological German this J-Term and passed their finals. In your honor, I
present this masterful treatise by the one-and-only Mark Twain:
The Awful German Language. The editor’s cut:

“But
when he, upon the street, the (in-satin-and-silk-covered-now-very-unconstrained-after-the-newest-fashioned-dressed)
government counselor’s wife MET,” etc., etc.

Keep in mind, this is
considered to be excellent German. I have always felt German to be a bit
too difficult for the average American to learn to speak well. Its grammar
is extremely complicated and is constantly being “tweaked.”
The main obstacle, however, is our reluctance to swallow our pride and to
speak the language despite the inevitable mistakes we’ll make (and which
most Germans will be quite happy to correct). I’ve suggested a solution,
however,
here.

8:13
PMVerbal aspect continues
to be
debated by Greek students. Maybe they could learn a few things from
the Hawaiian language, which is largely
aspectually based.

After a Bible study
and a lengthy season of prayer, each member presented their ministry goals
to the team. Here Miss Mary shares her craft ideas to the group, including
these angel decorations. Her goal, as she put it, is just to "love on"
people. I can't think of anyone more qualified to do that.

Becky will be making
our flight reservations shortly.
The Lord is bringing everything together in a wonderful way.

7:46
AM
It's that time of the year when everybody is buying textbooks for the
spring semester. And it's no easy task to assign texts these days. Sit
down with most any textbook and you'll discover that after a brief period
you can't read it. It's too textbooky, too factual, too dull, too dry.
Believe me, I know: I've produced my share of them. What brings on this
long-winded, heart-breaking wordiness? I'm not sure, but I have a hunch.
Everyone who writes textbooks knows that they are written for teachers,
not for students. As long as the textbook pleases the teacher it will make
the revered and unassailable list of "required reading." Students will be
forced to read it, whether it is well-written or not. I think we textbook
writers are finally wising up, though. About two or three books into my
writing career I decided I would try to write for the student and not for
the teacher. (Whether I have succeeded is up to you, dear reader, to
decide.) This means that a good textbook will have a simple style. It may
even contain personal anecdotes, cartoons, jokes, puns, and -- dare I say
it? -- first person pronouns. Scholars will call it unacademic, but
students will love it. And, after all, we're here to serve them, aren't we?

Speaking of
textbooks....

7:30
AM I
heard of a church recently that spends 87 percent of its annual budget on
salaries and buildings. The pastor wants to change this. He wants to
reorganize their priorities. It can be done. I think of a church that has
decided to forego salaries for leadership and rent for facilities as long
as there are single mothers in their congregation who desire to raise
their children at home. We need more churches like that. I know of
congregations that spend a good lump of money on Sunday School curriculum.
I've noticed that people in these churches are more likely to bring their
Sunday School quarterly to church than their Bibles. Is there not an
important lesson here? We shall become biblical churches in proportion as
we are willing to jettison the thoughts of men and look to a sounder
Source of truth. Very few churches take the sufficiency of Scripture
seriously. As a result, church members do not even begin to suspect there
is a biblical mind on major issues of the day -- let alone accept it and
adopt it. I suppose this desire to place the Bible above other books is
the most crucial mark of any church when we consider the matter of
edification. That is what it was like in Berea. There is nothing so
attractive in the world as a church where the Word of God is loved and
read and exalted and obeyed.

7:22
AM
Well, I've finally decided. And it wasn't easy, either. My
thoroughbred Traveler (photo below: note his tongue!) is now on the
market. I've decided to sell him to a good home. By that I mean two
things: To someone who can ride him at least three times a week, and to
someone who isn't skittish being around hot-blooded breeds of horses. Many
people get nervous around thoroughbreds, and their nervousness
communicates to the horse, who naturally gets spooky. It's not the horse's fault, mind
you, though he gets all the blame. At any rate, this is a big step for me.
I imagine I've ridden Traveler over 1,000 times. But now that I've got
two full-time jobs (teaching and farming, as well as our work in Ethiopia) it's impossible to keep up that
pace. It's just not fair to a superb athlete like Trav to keep him
pastured up all the time. So if you're interested in him, or know someone
who might be, send me an email and I'll shoot you the details. I'm also
willing to do a trade for a less active horse. To use a car analogy, I'd like
to downsize from a Ferrari to a Mercedes. But even at 54 years of age I'm
not ready for a Volkswagen Beetle, if you know what I mean.

Sunday,
January 28

4:49
PM
After speaking at Antioch Baptist Church in Red Oak, VA, Becky and I had
lunch in Chase City with an 86-year young saint who lost her husband two
years ago and her only child one year ago. We took her to a
hole-in-the-wall joint for some grate kuntry kookin. We met her at last
year's band concert and fund raiser for Ethiopia. What a joy to share
Christian fellowship with a sweet saint of God. I only hope I can be half
as sweet when I get to be her age. Not likely though. I have too much
curmudgeon in me, I think.

By the way, Becky and
I both "preached" this morning. She gave the children's sermon, I the
regular one. Hers was far better, I thought. She had the children walking
all around the sanctuary mimicking her every move: "Hand on head," "walk
backwards," "now skip." Her goal? Teach the children what "following"
Jesus meant. Was a perfect prelude to my message on the Great Commission
("Make disciples," not "Make decisions"!). We need to do this tag-team
thing more often.

7:29
AM
Sunday shout out to Matt, Liz, Caleb, Isaac, and Micah Rondeau who paid us
a visit yesterday and brought along a game of German Scrabble. Folks,
don't try this at home unless you've got plenty of Zeit -- and Geduld. The score at the end
of the game? Tied!

7:23
AM
Tomorrow night begins our second round of orientation meetings for our
teams that are going to Ethiopia with us this summer. Our focus is
currently on Ethiopian culture, including learning a few Amharic
expressions. Here's a short list of indispensable words and phrases.
Thought you might like to see them.

Tenestaline? Hello.

Amasagenalo.Thank you.

Ishi.Okay. Yes. Thank you.

Turuno.It’s good.

Konjono.It’s good.

Denane?How are you? (for a male)

Denanish?How are you? (for a female)

Denaneyn.I am fine.

Yesus Getano.Jesus is Lord.

Exahiber yemesgin.Praise God.

Ciao!Bye!

Seme mano?What is your name? (for a male)

Semish mano?What is your name? (for a female)

Yene sem _________ no.My name is ______________.

Baca.Finished.No more.

Tinish.A little.

Gobus.Really neat.

Exabiher fiker no.God is love.

Salam?How are you?

Salamno?How is everyone?

Buna.Coffee.

Shai.Tea.

Makiatto.Makiato (Italian coffee).

Dabo.Bread.

Injera.Injera. (basic staple – a pancake-like bread)

Wat.Stew.

Doro wat.Chicken stew.

Buna affalegeo.I would like buna.

Wuha.Water.

Edeme sintano?How old are you? (for a male)

Edemesh sintano?How old are you? (for a female)

And.One.

Hullett.Two.

Sost.
Three.

Arat.Four.

Amist.Five.

Sidist.Six.

Sabbat.Seven.

Simint.Eight.

Zetayn.Nine.

Aser.Ten.

7:14
AM
Does your church have one of those attendance boards at the front of the
sanctuary? If you do, please remember: the goal is never church
attendance. It is active
discipleship.
That's the thrust of my message this morning from Matthew 28:16-20.
"Major" in being church 24/7, not in "going to church" on Sunday. Move
beyond mere sloganeering ("every member a minister") and actually entrust
virtually all ministry to the "lay people." Everyone is gifted for some
ministry, and the Body of Christ needs all of its ministers. Don't forget:
my ministry is not more important than yours! By the way, only the Holy
Spirit of God has the power to drive us out in self-sacrificial service.
Church leaders cannot dispense this power. They need it quite as much as
the rest of us!

Saturday,
January 27

2:26
PM
Nate and I just finished shoveling a trailer load of horse manure into
Becky's vegetable garden. He's gone off to his farm to process a few more
meat chickens, Becky's gone to take him some coffee, and I'm working on my
message for tomorrow and on my teaching for Monday night's orientation for
the team going with us to Burji next summer. In this regard, Oshe (a
church leader in Burji) just sent us a few pix of the meeting hall that is
being built in the town of Soyama. Here's a "before" and "after" look:

Two years ago on our
first visit to Soyama:

Today:

I can also report the
good news that the termite problem is no more. The hall will serve both
the believers in Soyama town and those in the entire Burji District when
they gather for their annual meetings. It will also allow the church in
Soyama to use their current meeting hall to begin a new Christian primary
school. In fact, two of our Burji team members work in education here in
the states and will be able to provide guidance as the Burji people begin
their first Christian day school.

And to think that two
years ago there was no electricity in Soyama, no internet, and no email.
Now we're receiving photos instantaneously. God is good.

9:17
AM
Good news! The ISV Old Testament is
well on its way to completion. And we're currently gearing up for a major
review of the New Testament in California this summer. (I hope Huntington
Beach is breaking big.) Meanwhile, Wayne Leman has been examining the
English of the ISV. The
results of his labors might surprise you. I don't know about you, but
I think the grammarians' superstitions get in the way when you try to
produce simple English. In fact, grammar itself can get in the way.
Prescriptive grammar, that is. But the whole system of grammatical rules
is slowly being replaced by our modern way of talking. If we forget about
the rules for a moment and dare to use those "ungrammatical" formulas, our
style will be natural and casual. Scholars call this style "colloquial" --
an intentional light touch, which is what modern English sounds like.
Where the heavy-handed, old-fashioned writer tries hard to stick to the
rules, the casual writer makes them stick in everyone's mind by
downplaying them. In the ISV we've tried to emulate the style books for
the average American ought to be written in but never are. We've tried to
use basic principles of linguistics, a subject you've probably not heard
much about but only because its contributions have been buried in journals
and dissertations. So don't be surprised to read in the ISV that Jesus
spoke like this: "Who are you looking for?"
(John 18:4) -- which, of course, breaks all the rules (it "should" be
"For whom are you looking?").

On another note, the
principle of transculturalization is one of Christianity's towering
differences with Islam, which believes that the Quran cannot really be
translated at all. Christians have always believed that their Scriptures
can be translated into any tongues on earth, and that the truths of
Christianity can be understood through any culture. This is an impetus
behind a proposal at our seminary for a new masters degree in translation
and linguistics. If this 60-hour degree is approved by the trustees this
spring, it is set to begin this fall. I couldn't be more excited. I have
always wanted to train field translators and consultants.

Friday,
January 26

9:23
AMTravel advisory! In April, Becky and I will
be speaking about Ethiopia to a group of believers in Ohio. If you live in
Northern Virginia, West Virginia, Eastern Kentucky, or Southern Ohio and
would like us to speak to your group, please let us know as soon as
possible. Our trip dates are not set yet, but it will be either
April 19-23 (Friday to Monday) or
April 26-30 (again, Friday to Monday). We'd
like to maximize our travel time for the kingdom's sake.
The only day that will not be available is Sunday.

8:43
AM We
finished the roof repairs yesterday. And you should have seen the house.
The back part was built in 1845, the front in 1855. It must have been one
of the finest plantation homes in all of North Carolina in its hay day.
2-storied with hipped roof. A real gem. Nate's already been hired to paint
the roof of the house and several ante-bellum outbuildings. We'll get to
that job as soon as the weather warms up. Yesterday it was bitter cold.
Even with two jackets, a scarf, and a hat I never did get warm. As a
concession the boss man took me to a great seafood place for supper. Slaw,
hush puppies, trout, fries -- all for only 5 bucks. Today it's over to
South Boston to repair a barn roof. Already it promises to be much warmer
than yesterday.

8:35
AM
Have you ever visited Alan Knox's blog? If not, what are you waiting for?
Alan is concerned to identity normative behaviors that were characteristic
of life in the primitive church. He emphasizes how the church met together
"to stir one another up to love and good works" by "encouraging one
another" (this, of course, is what Heb. 10:24-25 clearly teaches is a
major purpose of the gathered assembly). I don't pretend to speak for Alan
(who is an eloquent writer), but it seems to me that he is convinced that
the way to build a great church is to follow the master plan that was so
effective in the early church. Permit me this word of perspective. Today
the needs of the unchurched determine the programs of a good many of our
churches. Services are "blended," or "seeker friendly," or whatever. The
most faithful (and effective) option, in the view of some of us, is to
recover the vision and imagination of our founding fathers (and mothers).
I'm a biblicist who believes that the 58 one-anothers of the New Testament
are the vertebrae of the Body of Christ. I also know that the Devil
probably also believes that too, and that faith must go deeper than
belief. Moreover, as one who is committed to Great Commission
Christianity, it's my observation that Christians who are involved in
every-member ministry are much more likely to engage in the ministry of
evangelism both locally and globally. Brother Alan seeks to remind us that
Christianity is more than supporting the church as an institution, and
that biblical Christianity is no unproven theoretical pipedream.

Or is it? Check out
his site, read the
Scriptures, and then decide for yourself.

Thursday,
January 25

6:53
AM
Nathan's landed yet another big job, so we're off to Enfield, NC, to
repair a roof on a hunting lodge. We hope to see several ante-bellum homes
on the trip, which takes us through historic Warren and Nash counties.
Maybe we'll also find a North Carolina delicacy along the way: hot dogs
with onions, chili, and slaw ("all the way").

6:42
AM
Brief farm update: Our main project these wintry days is fencing in the entire
farm, which begins by cutting away the brush and small trees along the
fence line. Nate does the chain saw work, I drag the cuttings away. Later
we'll put up woven wire, along with one strand of barbed wire at the top.
As you can see, there are advantages to doing this work in the winter. In
summertime the woods are impenetrable.

This little sweetie was born on Tuesday. Our babies are starting to come
fast and furious.

We're hauling loads of horse
manure to the farm from North Carolina. Hey, it's free!

Tom, Dick, and Mary are doing just fine, thank you. They can't wait to
greet you.

I do thank the Lord for the good weather. Mamas and babies are enjoying
it.

Wednesday,
January 24

8:40
PMAnybody feeling a little
weighed down today? Thank you, I see that hand. Here’s a
helpful reminder from Ray Stedman:

Having received Jesus Christ, we have adequate confidence for any
situation. As our immediate response of fear and trembling drives us back
to him, we can step up to any situation with courage, calmness and
confidence because we know God is at work in us both to will and to do of
his good pleasure.

8:30
PMMy friend Bill
Bennett has a wonderful list of print and audio resources for every
Christian man and woman. You can access them
here. Thank you, Brother Bill, for your ministry of
mentoring. I have personally been a beneficiary of it through the
years. I see in you and Doris a willingness to put the welfare of the Body
before all personal advantage, success, or reputation, and you are content
to stand among the saints as those who serve. That is very rare in today’s
world of over-professionalized ministry. In
multos annos!

8:20
PMTough times are coming
for the American church, as
The World According to Bruce reminds us. I am convinced that we are
rearing vast edifices of wood, hay, and stubble that will go up in smoke
at the fire test of time. Do a little church work, attend if the weather
is acceptable, give a few dollars to a good cause, make a gesture of piety
now and then – we don’t mind a little religion because it helps our
businesses and enhances our standing in society. I am deathly afraid for
the church in Ethiopia, that she will become like the American church –
all dressed up and made to look like durable building materials and not
the cheap firewood she all too often is. As my builder son often reminds
me: when it comes to construction, we get what we pay for.

8:17
PMKudos to my Ph.D.
student Alan Knox for publishing his review of An Emergent Theology for
the Emergent Church in the latest issue of JETS (49, 2006:
883-886). Excellent!

8:15
PMMany thanks to Mark
Waterman of Los Angeles for sending me a complimentary copy of his book
The Empty Tomb Tradition in Mark (published by Agathos Press). It is
based on his dissertation written at Fuller under Colin Brown.

8:13
PMI had an Ethiopian
student in my office yesterday. In our conversation we discussed eating
goat meat. That’s part of the regular diet for most of the world but it’s
practically unknown here in America, except among Africans. I love goat
meat. When cooked properly (as Becky always does), it’s delicious. You
might try it sometime.

8:12
PMIs cremation biblical?
Is it preferable to burial? Here’s an
essay that will get you thinking about this issue if you haven’t done
so already.

8:02
PMHave you noticed how
easy it is to love people who agree with us in matters of biblical
interpretation or ecclesiological polity? We can also get along quite well
with people who leave us alone. But do we really have a genuine love for
all the saints, as we are commanded in the New Testament? We may
talk about how much we love other Christians, but do we demonstrate it in
our blogs? Judging by the personal attacks that are being aired in the
blogosphere on a daily basis I think it is clear that our actions belie
our words whenever we are quick to be indifferent to the privacy needs of
others and critical of their motives. I see I am not the only one who
thinks this is an important issue (see Nathan Finn’s
decision about redirecting his blogging). Scientific tests have shown
that people are more interested in reading about other people than about
anything else. Why is this so? Probably because man knows nothing so well
as man. This is why people come up in our blog entries in discussions of
everything under the sun. These entries are often called “human interest
stories,” and they make writing (and reading) blogs interesting indeed.
And therein lies the challenge of blogging.

By the way,
here’s a good example of a recent blog entry that in my view addresses
an important missiological issue in a positive and salutary way (without
focusing on names or personalities).

7:55
PMCongratulations to my
J-term Greek class that met for the last time today. Out of 33 students,
16 had a semester average of 100 or better and thus received an A+ for the
course. I chalk this up to the logical nature of the Greek language. When
taught morphologically, I think that even a rock could learn it. So kudos
to all of you. See you next semester (which starts next week!).

7:52
PMOops! I just realized I
forgot to mention that our first baby goat of the year was born on Monday.
The problem is, none of the mothers has claimed him, so it’s back to
bottle feeding for a few weeks. "Mama" gave birth right around breakfast
time and rushed off to get her hay before even licking off her newborn.
Odd, but true.

Becky named him --
what else? -- "Breakfast."

7:50
PM
“If you believe what you like in the Gospel, and reject what you don’t
like, it is not the Gospel you believe, but yourself.” – St.
Augustine

Sunday,
January 21

2:44
PM
Here are some quick notes on a sleepy Sunday afternoon. I'll start with
this picture (taken a few days ago) of Becky's Cornish-White Rock supper,
accompanied by farm fresh beans and home-canned peaches. I have never
tasted better chicken in my life. What a treat.

This morning our
little church group sang at the local nursing home. Here's Nathan bringing
a brief devotional from the Scriptures to this dear company of people.

Everyone seems to
enjoy it when we lead them in the Baptist National Anthem (aka, "Victory
in Jesus"), especially when it is accompanied on the guitar and wash tub.
Many in the crowd naturally called the latter instrument the "gut bucket,"
and indeed we use it for such purposes here on the farm.

At Antioch Baptist
Church this morning I met this WW II veteran who flew in a B-17 during the
waning months of the European conflict. Instead of dropping bombs, he and
his crew dropped food supplies to the citizens of Amsterdam under a flag
of truce between the Amis and the Germans. That was in April and May of
1945. It was wonderful to hear his testimony of the Lord's direction and
protection during his service years.

2:27
PM
Wayne Leman is asking his readers to provide feedback about the
International Standard Version. He does so at the request of the
ISV Foundation's director, William Welty. As the New Testament editor of
the ISV, I certainly look forward to reading any comments you may have to
offer and promise to do what I can to turn them to the improvement of the
version in the months ahead.

7:45
AM Becky and I are off to sing at the
nursing home before I speak at Antioch Baptist Church. This afternoon it's
down to Oxford for an ordination service. An icy mix is expected
again today. We're planning extra travel time
because of road conditions. Please do the same.
Students: drive carefully coming to campus tomorrow morning. I'd
rather you be late for class than take any risks on the highway.

7:35
AM My
friend and colleague Maurice Robinson has joined the bloggers over at
Evangelical Textual Criticism. An excellent addition. Maurice,
blogging is like voting: do it early and do it often. Best wishes in your
new role.

7:30
AM
Over at
My
Simple Life, Lady Lora has been led to read her Bible before
logging on to her computer. That's a sound goal, and one I try to practice
daily. I don't know about you, but I couldn't make it through a single
moment of a single day
without spending time in the Word and prayer.

Saturday,
January 20

3:54
PM
Becky just went over to Nathan's farm to process about 30 chickens. Nathan
skins, while Becky freezes. Me? I'm working on a
message I'll deliver tomorrow night at an ordination service. Earlier we
got a lot of trim trimming done along the new fence line, until the chain
saw blade petered out, that is. All it needs is a good sharpening and
we'll be back in business. Nice serendipity: While Nate and I were working
who shows up but Becky with a lunch basket filled with hot soup -- wild
turkey with farm fresh maters and corn, with a little Ethiopian beriberi
tossed in to spice things up. Hit the spot.

George Barna, who directed the study, said a church's sense of community
is often tied to the average member's level of participation. Most
conventional churchgoers have no desire to improve their congregation's
ministry, nor do they feel a need to increase personal spiritual
responsibility, he said.

7:42
AMI see that Fondue is
making a comeback. I first tasted the stuff in 1978 while on a
missions trip that took us through central Switzerland. Can’t say I like
it very much. I much prefer
another Swiss dish.

7:35
AMIt’s winter again in
North Carolina. The air is clean and crisp, the sky cold and cloudless. I
walked around campus yesterday just to enjoy the outdoor beauty, singing and
doing some praying along the way. I usually intercede for my classes and
students during my on-campus jaunts, but mostly I just thank the Creator
for His magnificent handiwork.

7:24
AMBriefly noted…. We just
had a special treat. Nathan’s new chicken broilers are turning out to be
meatier and more delicious that I had imagined. I even like the white
meat…. Looks like he’s almost done with his remodeling job in South
Boston. I helped him paint the other day, and I may post a few pix of his work…. We’re having guests this weekend at
Bradford Hall. They are a seminary couple who just needed a little R & R.
Becky is really in her element when she is entertaining people…. This
Sunday we’ll be back at Antioch Baptist Church where I’ll be teaching from
the book of 1 Thessalonians, based on a study I prepared for Ethiopia….
I’m working up a book proposal for a publisher and also deciding how and
when to revise a book I published several years ago. Contracts, I’ve
noticed, have quadrupled in length since when I first started writing
books back in the 1980s. Much of this has to do with electronic and
Internet rights issues, which no one thought much about way back then.

Today it's back to
putting up fencing. The day is perfect for it. I'd like to have the entire
farm fenced in by the end of summer, all 123 acres of it. We'll see....

6:42
AMGreek students! Did you
know you can read the
Greek New Testament as well as the
Septuagint online? Eventually you may want to read
Classical Greek as well. I can attest from personal experience that
the key to mastering any language is reading it, reading it, and then
reading it some more.

6:35
AM
"Philosophers are people who write about things they don't understand, and
make it sound like it's your fault." - S. Lewis Johnson

6:31
AMI am trying to digest
Delbert Burkett’s
latest book, which makes some serious hay with the Markan Hypothesis.
Anyone who tires to challenge the status quo is welcome in my book, though
I doubt whether the entrenched theory of Markan priory is in any danger of
being overthrown any time soon, as Michael Pahl notes in his
review (.pdf) of the book.

6:20
AMAn unknown writer once
penned the following limerick: "There was a young
poet in Japan,/Whose poetry no one could scan./When told it was so,/He
replied, 'Yes, I know,/But I try to get as many words in the last line as
I can.' " I am currently chin-deep in preparing my lecture to be
given at the University of Marrakech in Morocco in March. The invitation
to lecture came from the language department there, and the theme of the
conference has to do with translating “sacred texts.” The Quran will be
discussed, as will the Bible. I am going to try and speak to the issue of
translating the poetry of the New Testament into English, using the ISV
New Testament as an example of what might be done in this area. The larger
issue I would like to address is the question of why we as students of the
New Testament are so insensitive to the rhetorical level of language when
it comes to reading and interpreting our Bibles. I think Old Testament
scholars are doing a much better job of it than we are, but we can all do
better both to understand and translate the poetry of the Bible. Why am I
so concerned about this matter? Only because my view of verbal-plenary
inspiration extends not only to the words of the Bible but also to the
rhetorical devices that God the Holy Spirit led the writers to employ.
Shouldn’t that drive us all to be sensitive to this level of language as a
meaningful level for receptors?

As a
servant, I want to do the will of God (John 4:34), and if anyone cannot
accept that, then that is his problem, not mine. I freely give myself to
follow Christ, no matter what; I want to be God's person in God's world,
doing what pleases Him (Matthew 8:34,35). I desire to be faithful to
Christ (Luke 17:7-10), whether things turn out the way I or others like
for them to or not. There will be times when I may feel like a fool
(Matthew 5:10-12); yet, I must remember that what appears to be success in
the eyes of man is not what is success in the eyes of God (Matthew
27:39-43). I shall be faithful and leave the outcome of everything to Him
(1 Corinthians 15:58; Galatians 6:9). I'll remember that God has made us
all different, and even though I may not have as many talents as the next
person, in the end, what counts is my using what God has given me the best
that I can; this is success (Matthew 25:14-24).

Amen to that. God’s
business is our business as Christians. We have no other.

6:01
AMA wise old preacher once
said, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under
heaven” (Eccl. 3:1). It seems that in this season of my life God has
called me to be intentional in carrying out His loving and merciful
purposes in Ethiopia. As long ago as 1906 G. Campbell Morgan said, “Any
man or woman in the church who does not know what it is to share the
travail that makes his kingdom come is dishonest and disloyal to Jesus
Christ.” The early Christians found out that there was no joy like the joy
of sharing Jesus with others. They saw evangelism as enabling people to
escape from the snares of the devil and be transformed from darkness into
light. Once you have been gripped by the need of people who do know the
Lord Jesus Christ, you will need no other to reason to spread the Good
News about Him with every person you can possibly reach.

To be quite frank,
nothing in my life has brought me as much joy as being about the Gospel
business. Missionary work allows me to participate in the greatest
commission ever given to believers – to make disciples of the nations
through Christ’s authority and presence (Matt. 28:18-20). This is the
primary way the church glorifies God, and the heart of the great
commission is to “make disciples.” The tense of the command implies, “Do
it, and do it now!” I admit that I have not always felt this urgency. But
I do now, and I look forward to discovering in the future even more deeply
what it means to disciple the nations for Christ. Notice that there is no
option in Jesus’ command. Either we are doing it or we or not. Either we
are being obedient or we are not. There can be no disciple-making without
a spirit of intentionality – a spirit of active pursuit that looks for
opportunities to evangelize and edify. A great commission person is
sharply focused. He or she doesn’t get bogged down in selfish agendas or
the soft cultural values of modern American life. A great commission
person is one who chooses to be so. We must be intentional about
going into our communities and our world in order to turn people into
committed followers of Christ. I have decided that my focus in life must
be on making disciples. If a ministry does not aim at making disciples,
why do it? I am learning to measure everything I do by whether it
contributes to the disciple-making process.

If nothing else,
missionary work has challenged my smugness and lethargy. I was born and
raised in laid-back Hawaii. My spiritual muscles are naturally flabby and
soft. But Jesus calls us to deny many of the comforts and pleasures we
take for granted every day. His disciples saw how He refused the things
they cherished – physical pleasure, popular approval, prestige – and
accepted willingly the things they sought to escape – poverty,
humiliation, sorrow, even death. In ministering to the sick, comforting
the sorrowful, and preaching the Gospel to the poor, Jesus showed us that
no service was too small and so sacrifice too great when it is done in His
name. Being a missionary has forced me to renew my dependence on the Holy
Spirit. Only the Spirit of God can enable believers to carry on the
redemptive tasks of evangelism and edification in the midst of the
watchful eyes of others. I teach three classes each semester, but on the
mission field class is always in session. Our every word and deed is
constantly scrutinized by believers and unbelievers alike. We must be
willing to be transparent, and the people to whom we open our lives will
see our many shortcomings. But hopefully they will also see that the heart
of the whole miraculous drama we call salvation is dependent not on any
man but on One who sacrificed self for the blessing of others.

Someone once said
that to be “in Christ” is to be “involved.” A burden is not
a burden as long as it is on the ground. Only when it is on our own
shoulders is it a burden. Have you taken up the burden of world
evangelization? May the Spirit be the prime mover in our hearts today. For
only He can give us a desire to see the nations reached with the Gospel.
Not only can He break us of the pride and lethargy that come so naturally
to us, He can thrust us out into the mission fields of the world so that
our lives bear much fruit for Him.

Monday,
January 15

5:58
AM
Wikipedia now has a stub on
Alaba, one of two regions in Ethiopia where the Lord Jesus has
appointed us to work.

5:51
AM A
reader in Australia sent along these words:

I am
so pleased to read the reports of your recent trip to Ethiopia. Your blog
has brought much pleasure these last few days. At least we can participate
through these welcome communications, even though we cannot be there.
There can be no doubt of the work of our magnificent Father. Your
statement, "ministry is largely just being natural and showing others that
you care about them" brought a loud "Amen" from me, and something I've
been trying to have people grasp for many years. Surely that is what
Jesus demonstrated. If more church leaders demonstrated this, instead of
their intellectual and theological prowess, more of their congregations
would be able to see that God has already equipped His people to do the
task of ministry by giving them the grace to be able to love others as our
Lord loved and loves us.

Amen and amen. If the
church is to be credible in society, barriers must come down -- including
the clerical barrier (pastors on pedestals) and the
respectability barrier (upper class versus lower class). Nor can we make a
division between the spiritual Gospel and social concern as if loving,
practical assistance to the less-fortunate is un-Christian. I am quite
certain that the combination of genuine concern for people's hurts and the
bold but loving presentation of the Gospel message is a great attraction
in proclaiming and demonstrating the Good News of Jesus Christ. Becky and
I have found it to be so both in Ethiopia and in southern Virginia, and I
imagine that were I more sensitive to the Holy Spirit's leading I would
see an even greater impact. I am not pleading for preaching that is bereft
of genuine biblical content, for there is no real missionary love in a
watered-down message. I am arguing, rather, for the combination of a
loving heart and a cool head -- a single passion for Jesus that spills
over into social and spiritual concern. This is what I think my
correspondent from Down Under had in mind in his letter, and with his
thoughts I concur wholeheartedly.

5:45
AMIf my lungs are any
indication, I brought a good bit of Alaba back home with me. You never
really get used to the dust. It's everywhere. Reminds me of something I
once heard about evangelism. The speaker was talking about traveling in
Africa on a dusty road. Rolling up the car windows did little good as the
dust crept through the floorboard. You just can't escape it. That's like
evangelism, he said. It is when a person is so filled with Jesus that he
can't escape His presence that evangelism becomes natural and inevitable.
Great analogy, I thought to myself in the middle of coughing.

Sunday,
January 14

8:15
AM I
wish all of my Greek students good success as they take their first exam
this weekend. I expect good, natural English in their translations from
Greek to English, though I do allow for the Greek word order to be
retained when emphasis is indicated, as in "Disciples of the Lord we are."
I call this a "Yoda-ism,"
and it is quite acceptable for exam purposes.

I also hope many of
you will earn the 110 Award. Awards will be given out on Monday.

7:58
AM
The Muslims in Alaba are attracted to Christianity for a number of
reasons, I suppose. People can see the power of the Gospel -- the power of
a changed life, a healed marriage, a new love for others. I think they can
also see that Christians are joyful and that believers in Christ can have
good, old-fashioned fun. They can laugh out loud and poke fun at each
other. One day, after an intensive period of teaching and preaching, some
believers and I were enjoying a cup of coffee on the main drag in Alaba
Town when I decided to draw a few portraits. Remember, there simply are no
foreigners in Alaba, let alone crazy foreigners like yours truly.

It takes us only a
few minutes to produce a profile sketch that is always signed "Jesus loves
you."

At this point
everyone else decided they would try to draw me, so out came the pens and
paper.

The artwork was,
well, less than professional. In this drawing I resembled a piece of
cotton candy....

...the punishment for
which was:

Not to worry, though.
We reconciled and lived happily ever after. Now, what do the people of
Alaba think of this crazy white man and his wife (who are named,
ironically, "Black") and their Christian friends? I hope they can see the
joy of the Lord Jesus and the power of God that can reconcile people to
each other despite race, language, and culture. As Becky recently
reported,
"ministry" is largely just being natural and showing others that you care
about them. Wouldn't you agree?

Saturday,
January 13

4:36
PM
Please help us welcome the latest additions to Rosewood Farm. Someone in
Carolina was giving away ducks. The price was right and we grabbed 3
today. We've named them Tom, Dick, and Mary. We hope to get a few more
tomorrow. They'll go in Nathan's pond.

6:23
AM
Last night we finally got around to watching
Tora, Tora, Tora.
The story of Mitsuo Fuchida, who led the attack on Pearl Harbor, is a
spectacular testimony to the grace of God. You can read about it
here.

6:20
AMHere’s a
fine study (.pdf) of the way textual variants are handled in modern
English translations. I offer one suggestion. Editors would do well to use
non-question-begging language in citing textual variants. Whenever you
say, “The earliest and best manuscripts omit…,” you have automatically
prejudiced the reader: “Why would I want to disagree with the earliest and
best manuscripts?” For what it’s worth, in the
ISV New Testament we tried to use neutral language that allows readers
to decide for themselves (upon further investigation, obviously) which
reading is “original” – e.g., “Other mss. read…” or “Other mss. lack….” A
case in point is Matt. 5:22. Here the ISV notes, “Other mss. lack
without a cause.” Compare the ESV (which uses somewhat prejudicial
language): “Some manuscripts insert without cause.” Why couldn’t
the translators have said, “Some manuscripts lackwithout cause”?
If the word “insert” is used, the obvious implication is that without
cause was added later.

6:17
AMThe Fellowship of Grace
Brethren Churches has a blog list
here. I have taught courses for the FGBC graduate school (Grace
Theological Seminary) both in Winona Lake and in Southern California, and these are
fine people with a big heart for
missions. Incidentally, Grace College and Seminary is currently
seeking to fill the office of
provost (.pdf).

6:13
AMDon’t forget our
Last Twelve Verses of Mark conference on April 13-14. I have begun
writing my paper. I think you’ll be a wee bit surprised by the tack I’m
taking. Unless you’ve read
this book, that is.

By the way, we
translated the above text in Intermediate Greek Grammar last semester. Any
second year student should be able to translate the Didache with relative
ease. Why not give this passage a try?

5:56
AMGreek students! Should
the term “deponency” be set aside in Greek studies?
This writer thinks so (.pdf.), and very logical indeed are his
arguments. (I make many of the same observations in my
beginning grammar on pp. 80-81.) I still believe this whole topic is a
doctoral dissertation begging to be written. Any takers?

5:51
AMWe just
received an email from a journalist in Finland seeking
permission to translate and publish
Miracle in Alaba in a Finnish Christian Magazine. Needless to say, we
were surprised and delighted by this request. When we told Nathan about it
he joked, “Oh, so now we cross the Finnish line!”

5:45
AMI was glad to see a hint
of humility in the president’s speech on Iraq. It should have gone a lot
further. Humility is not very
popular with politicians nowadays. We want peace without repentance, joy
without conversion. But Jesus says, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His
righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.” Everyone is
seeking “all these things” but not many are interested in God’s
righteousness. But God’s order has never been reversed: righteousness,
then restfulness. Only when we as nation exchange our own
putrefying self-righteousness for the imparted righteousness of Christ will we
experience His peace and blessing.

It is
sufficient for all our beliefs and for all our practices. If I were to ask
you why you do things the way you do in your church, would the answer be
“Because it was done that way in the New Testament”? Apostolic principles
and practices, my friend, are not optional; they are obligatory. Jesus
loves His Bride. He gave Himself for her. It is His institution. There is
nothing on earth more important to Him. Why, then, do we have so many
church leaders who are well taught in every area of doctrine but the
church?

5:23
AMAlan Knox appeals for
believer participation in the meeting of the church. He is, of course,
right. The meeting of the church is to be more than a spectator event.
It is to be participatory, and the reason it is to be participatory is
because God says so. The Bible puts it like this: “As everyone has
received a gift, employ it for one another, as good stewards of God’s
varied grace” (1 Pet. 4:10). Why, then, do we tolerate Christians who opt
out of all service in the church and the world? Why does the church
shelter them under the excuse that they have nothing to offer? Such
thinking is nothing less than blasphemous because it directly
contradicts the Word of God. It is obvious that the church is making it
far too easy for Christians to abdicate their personal responsibility to
serve God. We have forgotten the significance of stewardship – that great
Anglo-Saxon word that is virtually meaningless today. And it is
meaningless today because stewardship means responsibility, it involves
responsibility, it demands responsibility. One day God will say to
each of us who professes to know Christ, “Turn in the account of your
stewardship!” (Luke 16:2). Not, “Turn in someone else’s account.” Not,
“Turn in the account of your pastor or your youth minister or your Sunday
School director.” The time has come to
ask the lazy, irresponsible Christian some hard questions. Why have you
buried your talents in the earth? Why have you hidden your gifts under a
bushel? Why do you live a useless life when you might be a blessing to
many? Jesus told His disciples, “If anyone wants to come after Me, let him
deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me” (Mark 8:34). “If you
want to be My disciples,” Jesus was saying, “you must live like people on
their way to the gallows.” Not crowns but towels are the insignia of God’s
kingdom, and He best honors those who stoop and serve. To be a good
steward of one’s gifts in God’s eyes, to serve others in love and
humility, is infinitely more important than to be a great success in the
eyes of the world – or even the church.

Robert Miller, “The
Text of Rom. 11:31” (pp. 37-53; argues for the omission of the second
nun).

Congratulations to
you both. Well done indeed.

5:12
AMWhile in Africa my
greatest concern was whether Nathan would have to face a snow or ice storm
by himself on the farm. So I was grateful to hear that the weather in
southern Virginia was, to say the least, mild while we were away. It
turned cold the very day we returned but it’s about to warm up again for
the weekend. I see we weren’t the only ones to be blessed with
warmer-than-usual temps in 2006.

5:08
AMI once wrote a little
piece called
The Death of English. I thought of that essay while introducing Greek
grammar to my students this week. I reminded them that most of them would
be learning English grammar for the first time. Yes, they had courses in
English while in high school and college, but did they really learn how
the language works? I believe learning a foreign language is probably the
single best way to master your own language. At least I hope this becomes
evident in the weeks to come.

5:03
AMYour Ethiopian
missionaries are on the move again this weekend. If you’re in the area,
join us for our first post-trip report at Antioch Baptist Church north of Clarksville, VA. The service begins at 11:00 am.

5:42
AM I
can remember the exact moment I fell in love with languages. It was the
first day of 5th grade at Kainalu Elementary School in Kailua, Hawaii. The
teacher came into the classroom and asked us, "Como esta Usted?" "Muy
bien, gracias," was the reply she taught us. I absorbed the language like
a sponge and wished she had given us more than a handful of Spanish phrases that
year. But it was a start at least. In Alaba I met with the children
regularly for language lessons. I taught them a song I made up that
included the words "How are you" and "I am fine" in several languages,
including German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Modern Greek, and even
Hawaiian. Every night they would look forward to their lessons with "Papa
B." In Amharic I added the words "Jesus is Lord," "God is good," and
"Jesus be praised." On our final evening together they sang their song for
their enthusiastic parents. One of them, Tekaleyn (center right in
the photo below), even learned the Greek Alphabet Song in one easy lesson.
Before I left Alaba he was writing messages to me in Greek, such as "I
love you very much." It's amazing how quickly and easily children can
learn languages, isn't it?

5:27
AMGreek students! Here’s
an
interesting report (.pdf) showing that English is still the most
widely-spoken second language in the EU. It reminded me of flying into Da
Vinci Airport in Rome one day on an Alitalia airline in which the Italian
pilot was required by international law to speak, not Italian, but English
with the tower. In a similar way, Greek was the lingua franca in the first
century A.D., the medium through which the apostles could communicate
their message across the length and breadth of the Mediterranean world. It
is not because Greek is inherently superior to the other languages of the
world that God chose it for the inscripturation of the New Testament. It
was simply the most widely known language of the day. It would be well, I
think, to study it as we would any other language, according to the principles of
“linguistics” (a fancy term for the study of how languages work). In our
class we will take a mildly linguistic approach to the study of New
Testament Greek, which means less rote memorization of paradigms and
(hopefully) a greater understanding of what we are learning. So stick with
it – the rewards are literally out of this world. And remember: if you
need help, I am only an email or phone call away.

5:21
AMI love horses. As
everyone knows, I own and ride a former race horse (disclaimer: I bought
him after his career had ended). He is worth every penny I spent on him,
and he has kept me in great shape. But I also happen to love and admire
the concept of freedom and limited government. Thus it is truly pitiful that the great state of
Indiana has decided to
subsidize horse racing to the tune of $27 million. Right. I suppose we
should also ask the Federal Government to subsidize degenerate art. Oops,
it already does!

5:16
AM
Man, did I miss
these guys.

Monday,
January 8

6:39
AM
The latest addition to our home page is called
Miracle in Alaba. It's the first of
several post-trip reports. Many thanks again for your faithful prayers
while we were gone.

6:34
AM
Here's an amazing thing. Baker Books has informed me that a publisher in
Taiwan is producing a Chinese-language edition of
New Testament Textual Criticism. There must be a seminary there that I
don't know about. By the way, it's refreshing that a foreign publisher
actually contacted my American publisher before releasing one of my books.
Unfortunately this happens all too rarely.

6:23
AM
Today's Back-to-School Day for a certain prof. And a mighty happy prof he
is. There's nothing quite like the classroom, especially if Greek is being
taught. A story
is told about Oliver Wendell Holmes, one of America's most distinguished
Supreme Court Justices. Holmes, at age 90, was in the hospital when President
Theodore Roosevelt came to visit him. As the president entered the
hospital room he noted that Holmes was reading a Greek grammar. Roosevelt
asked, “Why are you reading about Greek grammar, Mr. Holmes?” Holmes
replied, “To improve my mind, Mr. President.” Here's a man at 90 still
trying to learn something new. And so
I wish all of my beginning Greek students, young or old, great success in
their studies, despite the inevitable stresses and strains of learning a
new language. Perhaps this "encouragement" will help:

"Greek is a language,
at least it used to be; it killed off all my friends, and now it's killing
me. All
are dead who ever spoke it, all are dead who ever wrote it, blessed death,
they surely earned it!"

3:18
PM
Greetings! Just back from the Mexican restaurant and visiting the nursing
home. We arrived home this morning at 1:00 after 38 hours of travel in 5
airports. It was a fantastic trip in every way. Thank you, thank you,
thank you for praying for us. Your prayers were answered in miraculous
ways. I can't wait to tell you what the Lord Jesus is doing in Alaba.
First I've got to get caught up on your emails. I just wanted you to know
that Becky and I are in great health, excellent spirits, and super-excited
about writing our reports. Hold on to your hats! Thanks also to the
Rondeaus for the supply of Doritos and salsa and the Igarishi family for
the delectable goodies. Thanks especially to Nathan for taking care of the
farm and the animals during our absence. I'm very sad to report that we
lost Lily, our Nubian goat, to CAE while we were gone. The saddest part is
that she was fully pregnant. Miss Lily would have made a wonderful mommy.
I will miss her.